


Over-analyzed Marvel Movie Moments

by 10scheherazade01



Category: Iron Man (Movies), The Avengers (2012)
Genre: Artificial Intelligence, BAMF Natasha Romanov, Creation, Gen, Gender Roles, Literary References & Allusions, Regret, as a weapon, baptism of water and fire
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-10-09
Updated: 2012-10-11
Packaged: 2017-11-15 22:48:28
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/532631
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/10scheherazade01/pseuds/10scheherazade01
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Proof that being an English Major can infect all areas of your life. Musings about literary allusions, motifs, archetypes and other such mumbo jumbo in Marvel Movies</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Baptism

1-Baptism: Iron Man

When Tony is being tortured in the cave they repeatedly dunk his head in water to coerce him to make weapons, and he escapes with a plethora of fireballs and explosions. This is his baptism of water and fire. Tony Stark died and he rebuilt himself to be a stronger, better person in a cave, with a box of scraps. As they state in Iron Man 2, he rose as a phoenix from the ashes.

\-------------- 

I was considering Tony's captivity the other day, and it hit me that his experience is a prime example of a character going through a metaphorical (and in this instance somewhat literal) baptism. This is not necessarily a religious thing, it simply refers to trials characters experience that shape and reform them.


	2. Time

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inevitability of Time

2-Time: Iron Man 2

Though he tries to hid it, Tony is one of the superheroes most aware of his mortality, and it is apparent throughout the entire second film.

When Tony is in Pepper's office trying to tell her he is dying, the pinwheel on her desk irritates Tony. It agitates him because it represents the progression of time, and mocks him by reminding him of the inevitability of time, of his mortality, and that his time is running out. Once she leaves, he jams various objects in to stop it, desperate to escape the mocking motion.

\-------------------- 

Perhaps I'm reading too much into the use of props here, but Tony is frighteningly aware of his numbered days in Iron Man 2, and is torn between preparing for the inevitable, and ignoring it.


	3. Creation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Creation vs Destruction

3-Creation: Iron Man 1, 2, and Avengers

Creating JARVIS, Dummy and the other robots whether conscious or subconscious is an attempt to balance the destruction in his life. His father was an ironmonger, an weapons contractor, and Tony took up that mantle later on. Creating, and specifically creating AI's is Tony trying to create an identity for himself outside of his father's legacy, and the moniker Merchant of Death.

\----------------

There is a general con census that Tony has 'daddy-issues' and much of that comes I believe, from him trying to escape his father's shadow. His work in artificial intelligence is something that didn't overlap with Howard (as far as I can tell) and is an accomplishment he can claim for himself.


	4. Regrets

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bruce Banner's regrets.

4-Regrets: Avengers

“Well I don't every time get what I want.” Bruce Banner says this regretfully as he rocks a cradle. The painful want is exposed here, his grief at lost opportunities. It is symbolic of all that he has hoped for and lost. The vulnerability he shows to Natasha here contributes to his wariness of SHIELD and of Natasha in particular. He has shown weakness, and his experience shows that weakness is always used against him.

\-------------

Funny enough, the cradle part isn't speculation. In the commentary Joss Whedon mentions that the cradle and line together was intentional.


	5. Topsy Turvy

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The joys of camera angles.

5-Topsy Turvy: Avengers

When the Avengers and Fury are in the lab and an argument breaks out prompted by Loki's scepter, at one point the camera angle changes from normal, to sweeping over the scepter and turning upside down. This is the scepter attempting to turn them inside out, upside down, tear them apart. The subtlety of it though, is that it doesn't put words in their mouths. It digs up their dark thoughts, the things they sometimes wish they could say, but know they should not. The sweep of the camera is the visual manifestation of Loki's manipulation, and what he is doing to the team.

\-----------

 

The funny part about this, is that Whedon asked the camera men if manipulating the camera angle like that would need to be after filming, but they said they could do it then. They figured out how to do it, with a little trouble, but were able to do it. When they finally showed the movie to the actors, the cast were all like “Oh! So that's what you were doing. We thought you had all gone insane.”


	6. Weapon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Natasha is a BAMF. But we already knew that.

6-Weapon: Iron Man 2, Avengers

One of Black Widow's signature moves consists of wrapping her legs (fondly referred to as Thighs of Death) around their heads or necks, bringing them down. Or breaking their necks, depending on what suits her at the time. This is symbolic of Natasha's willingness to use her sex and sexuality as a weapon. She doesn't allow her gender to hinder her work. Anything is a weapon to Natasha Romanov, and she wields it as a deadly weapon as adeptly as any other in her arsenal. On the same note, in Black Widow's opening scene in The Avengers, as she is walking away from the pile of men she has given the beating of their lives, she picks up her high heels, and you can see there is a hole in her nylons. These are the only cracks in her mask, the only signs of her distress over the news that “Barton is compromised.”

\----------

I've seen some discussions about Natasha and her fighting style, and found I agree with those who mention that she doesn't fight like a man. She fights like an incredibly deadly woman. She uses others strengths against them, and doesn't bother trying to compensate. She is such a complex and interesting character, and wonderful to watch fight.


End file.
